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CA9: Police have no duty to put all facts in affidavit for search warrant; the question is probable cause, not proof of guilt

By John Wesley Hall, Jr.

In a case involving the arrest of persons actually innocent, the police failure to include every known fact in an arrest affidavit did not show that they made a misstatement that misled the magistrate. Also, a prosecutor reviewed the papers before filing. Ewing v. City of Stockton, 2009 U.S. App. LEXIS 26799 (9th Cir. December 9, 2009)*: The Ewings contend that the officers omitted other information casting doubt on Shirk's identification of Heather. But "[t]he government need not include all of the information in its possession to obtain a search warrant .... The omission of facts rises to the level of misrepresentation only if the omitted facts 'cast doubt on the existence of probable cause.'" United States v. Johns, 948 F.2d 599, 606-07 (9th Cir...continue to full post

Full post as published by Fourth Amendment on December 13, 2009 (boomark / email).